Combination bath spray device and temperature indicator



W. C. BAXTER July 14, 1953 COMBINATION BATH SPRAY DEVICE AND TEMPERATURE INDICATOR Filed Feb. 27, 1951 INVHVTOR. 1 WILLIAM C. BAXTER ATTUMEY Patented July 14, 1953 William C. Baxter, RochesteLN. Y., assignor to Trimble, Inc., Rochester, N. Y .,1a corporation ofNewYork' y Y Appucation February 27, 1951,4 serial No. 213,024

' comms. (ci. 'z3-2.4.3)v

This invention relates to. a combination bath spray device and temperature indicator and has for its purpose to afford la simple and practical structure that isespeciaHy adapted for use in connection with rthe bathing of infants.

A moreparticular purpose ofl the invention is to provide ,an eiicient. spray head in which the water acts as an injector to draw iny airthat is thoroughlyintermingled with the Water before its discharge so as to reduce the pressure of the Wate'rand provide `a softlikevgentle spray offering little shock as it strikes they infant, and which at the same time gives an indication of the temperature ofthe water at a pointjust before it emergesl from the spray head on tothe body of theinfant.V

A furtherobject of the invention is to provide an economical and simple structure foradmitting air to a spray head connected witha flexible tvater hose of a bath spray, and toiarrange a therf mometer so as to give an indication ofthe temperature ofthe water in the chamberiwhere it is mixed with the incoming air..

AAnother purpose'of the inventionis to provide a simple arrangement thatenables constructing and readily assembling the parts of a spray head in such fashion that` airy drawn in through a passage surrounding the sprayv head inlet and water hose Whilea thermometer is positioned in thesame passagewith its bulb projecting into the mixing Chamber Qi the. Spray head- .Where the. water and air are intermingled just before emerg-l ing fromthe spray head, thus enabling a deter-v mination of 'thetemperature of the Water at a point immediately before it strikes the bodyof g the infant. An additional object of the .inven' tion is to afford an arrangement of parts whereby ythespray head can be readilyattached to alflexiblewater hose-and a rigid transparent sleeve surrounding the spray head inlet and hose canb Vreadily at tached to the spray head while a perforate spray,

plate is detachably securedto the head.`

To these and other ends, the invention consists in the construction andarrangement of parts that will appear clearly from the followingdescriptionA when read in conjunction with the accompany-vr ing drawings, the novel features being pointed out inthe claims following the specification,

In 'the drawingsz'" Fig. 1 is a view' in side elevation of a combination bath spray device and temperature indicatorv constructed in accordance with a preferred em' bodiment of the invention; adwaarmee .Segna View aken awater inlet shaped as"r shown in Fig. 2 to af# ford a reduced portion 9 atthe center and widen'' ing gradually towardiboth ends, while Il desf ignates' transverse'openings in the elongated neck' 2 centrauy of Fig. loathe une' 2 2 looking m the direction indicated;

Fig. 3 is anenlarged detail sectionalview taken en -the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction Fig. 4 is anenlarged detail sectional view taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. 2 with the thermometer removed and looking in the direction indicated;`

Fig. 5 is al View in end elevation of' the spray head;

Fig. 6 is asimilar view with the perforate spray plate removed, and

Fig, 7 is a transverse sectional view on line IK-' 1 of Fig. 2 looking,A in the direction indicated.

Referring more particularly to the drawings in which like reference numerals referto the' same parts throughoiitthe several views, Vdesignate's a hollow `spray head constructed of transparent medium soft Vinylite or suitableplastic or other material that is resilient andflexible, sii'ciently to hold its normal shapeand permit detachable connection of the parts Awith which it is associated. Y' 'f The hollow spray head l affords a mixing chamber 2 between itsinner and outer ends and has a preferably curvedouter surface, as` shown' in Figsi and 2, withy awide outer end andra re' duced inner end, while`3 designates a transverse wall adjacent vto the inner end of thespray head terminating il; an elongated lneclcQthe outer end 4j of which isprovidedwith exterior ribs 5 andl adapted to receive awaterhose 6 whichmay be of Vinylite or any desirable yieldable material that can be rforced over theend or connecting pori tion 4 of theneck and held thereonfby a split metan ring 'rheiimer end" 4' or connecting y portion of the neckis preferably `of reduceddi-f' ameter to vafford a shoulder Bagaiiist Wh'ich'thev water hose abuts when secured in position.'`

The elongated neck has'extending therethrough' connectingsaid 'reducedcentral portion 9 with the areasu'rrounding the neck to permit air to an injector t draw in the air which is thoroughlyy internigled with the Water inthe mixing chamberZ by the turbulent action 'created as movement of the water i'sinterrupted when it strikes thespray plate at the outletend of the spray head.

In order to afford a housing for the thermometer tube to be described presently and an air chamber from which air can be continuously drawn into the water inlet, there is provided a rigid transparent sleeve I 2 formed of hardVinylite or other plastic or suitable transparent material, the sleeve I2 having a collar I3 at its inner end which enters a recess in the head and interlocks with an overlying portion or shoulder I4 formed at the inner end of the yieldable spray head. At its opposite end, the sleeve I2 is constructed to fit more or less snugly around the water hose 6, and includes an end wall I5 that has a central opening to receive the water hose 6 and adjacent openings I6 to permit air to enter between the sleeve and the water hose, whence it passes through the sleeve and into the openings I I which communicate with the water inlet.

The inner end wall 3 of the spray head is provided with an enlargement I1 extending into the mixing chamber 2 and having an opening I8 therethrough to receive the thermometer I9, which projects through the opening I8 in the spray head into the passage afforded between the transparent sleeve I2 and the water hose 6. The transparent sleeve I2 is provided on its exterior with a temperature indicating scale 2 I, the thermometer being positioned in the spray head so that a xed indication on the thermometer corresponds with a predetermined mark, 100 for instance, on the thermometer scale, so that after the thermometer is once arranged in the sleeve, movement of the liquid in the thermometer will give an accurate reading on the scale on the outside of the transparent sleeve I2, the thermometer liquid being visible through the sleeve.

22 designates integral strengthening ribs or flanges projecting radially from the spray head I into the mixing chamber 2, while 23 designates a. perforate spray plate of metal or other suitable material, its outer edge or periphery entering a groove 24 and held by the overlying flange 25 at the outer end of the spray head I.

To assemble the parts, the rigid transparent sleeve I2, before beingconnected to the spray head, is first positioned around water hose 6 and the latter is then forced over the inner end 4 of the neck or hose connector on the spray head and secured by the split metal ring 1. Following this, the outer end of sleeve I2 is forced toward the spray head into the recess between the neck 4 and the surrounding portion of the-spray head until flange I3 of the sleeve I2 springs under and interlocks with the shoulder I4 of the spray head, which is sufficiently yieldable to permit such engagement and detachable connection between the spray head and rigid sleeve.

The tube f the thermometer I9 is next inserted through the outer open end of the rspray head into the opening in the enlargement II and into the space between the sleeve I2 and the water hose 6 until it is properly positioned with reference to the scale 2l on the sleeve I2, the thermometer having a iixed marking thereon corresponding to a predetermined indication on the scale. The thermometer is held frictionally in its adjusted position by the resiliency of the neck I'I of the spray head which engages the tube of the thermometer with sufficient tightness to prevent water from passing from the mixing'chamber to the space around the thermometer tube or between the sleeve I2 and the Water hose.

With the thermometer Vin this position, the perfoiate spray plate 23 is inserted intothe outer end of the spray head which engages yieldably 4 over the periphery of the spray plate and the device is ready for operation.

It will be understood that the flexible water hose 6 is connected with any suitable source of water supply such as a conventional faucet and when the water is turned on, it issues through the reduced opening 9 of the water inlet of the spray head with sufcient force to draw air from the surrounding space between the sleeve I2 and the water hose and spray head through openings II into the water inlet at its narrowest point. The water and air emerge through the gradually widening passage into the mixing chamber 2, and the water being interrupted in its travel by the spray plate 23 which acts as a baiile, is thrown backwardly in the mixing chamber 2 where there is a turbulent intermingling of the air and water, and the water issues from mixing chamber 2 through the spray plate 23 at considerably reduced pressure owing to the enlarged outer end of the spray head and the amount of air with which the water has become charged. The temperature of the water in the mixing chamber 2 can be instantly determined by observing the thermometer liquid through the transparent sleeve I2 in relation to the scale 2I and thus, at any instant, one can determine the temperature of the water as it strikes the body of the infant, since the temperature is taken within the mixing chamber and gives an accurate reading of the water in its final aerated state just before issuing from the spray head through the perforate spray plate 23.

While the invention has been described with reference to the structural embodiment herein shown, it is not confined to the precise details set forth and this application is intended to cover such modifications or departures as may come within the purposes of the improvement and the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

l. A hollow spray head of yieldable resilient material having a transverse wall adjacent t0 its inner end terminating in an elongated neck arranged centrally of said Wall and having a water inlet opening extending therethrough, the outer end of said neck being connectible to a water hose, a handle comprising a rigid transparent elongated sleeve carried by said head surrounding and spaced from said neck and water hose, said sleeve extending a, substantial distance along the water hose and affording between the hose and said sleeve a well of a length and Width suiicient to house a thermometer tube, and a spray plate secured at the outer end of the head, said hollow spray head including a chamber between the spray plate and the water inlet opening and said transverse wall having an enlargement projecting into said chamber with a thermometer-receiving opening extending through said enlargement and transverse wall whereby a thermometer may be located with its bulb in said chamber and its tube arranged in said well between said water hose and said elongated sleeve and parallel thereto.

2. A hollow spray head of yieldable resilient material having a. transverse wall adjacent to its inner end terminating in an elongated neck arranged centrally of said wall and having a water inlet opening extending therethrough, the outer end of said neck being connectible to a water hose, a handle comprising a rigid transparent elongated sleeve surrounding and spaced from said neck and water hose, said sleeve extending a substantial distance along the water hose and affording between the hose and said sleeve a Well of a length and Width sufficient to house a thermometer tube, a collar at the inner end of the sleeve projecting into a recess in the head and having interlocking engagement with a shoulder therein, and a spray plate secured at the outer end of the head, said hollow spray head including a chamber between the spray plate and the water inlet opening and said transverse wall having an enlargement projecting into said chamber m with a thermometer-receiving opening extending through said enlargement and transverse wall whereby a thermometer may be located with its bulb in said chamber and its tube arranged in said Well between said water hose and sleeve and y 5 parallel therewith.

WILLIAM C. BAXTER.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date Campbell Nov. 22, 1921 Silten May l2, 1936 Aghnides Aug. 6, 1940 Aghnides Apr. 20, 1943 Goodrie June 6, 1950 Palmquest et al Dec. 11, 1951 Leopold et al Dec. 18, 1951 

